Tag: album

It’s finally here! I present you, “Lavash” – the Music Video, or short film rather. This is the single off my upcoming album: The World to Come LP, which you can stream via Apple Music & Spotify & purchase via iTunes.

Pre-order links will be available very soon. The album is scheduled for a release in mid-April. Listen to the second single “On the Inside” – below:

FOR PURCHASES USE EMAIL FOR INQUIRIES OR VISIT MY STORE ON ETSY: https://www.etsy.com/shop/BASTARTE?ref=l2-shopheader-name

Like, follow & purchase original politically inspired anti-art pieces, part of the official Bastart collection by Syrian-Armenian artist Krikos. Currently residing in Orlando, FL. Visit my page, twitter & instagram @KRIKOS88. All commissions and professional inquiries can be sent to KRIKOSoffocial@gmail.com.

I have a special event announcement coming shortly. I will be teaming up with in the #Orlando DowntownArts District with the elegant Loft 55 Gallery & Boutique to present you all my #BASTART collection, as well as an unrevealed collaboration piece by myself and my #ColourosfhteCulture comrade Yous Elsayed.

Stay tuned for more announcements. Support anti-art & a movement for perfection, quality & justice.

I’ll never forget the day this album dropped. I was in another dimension. I was inspired.

This album performed well. Its critics are caught in a web of infinite skepticism.

I bought this album and Yeezus on the same day. I believe these are probably the two greatest artists of our time. If you pay attention, I have been influenced by them in all of my work.

The political undertones in this work, like all of Jay-Z’s works, are omnipresent. The cover itself, inspired by greco-roman mythology, the inner-booklet, as well as the content, from beginning to end, captures the stark reality of an American hustler. The whole time I felt I was watching a Spike Lee movie.

Jay-Z is hated for his business approach. I think he is an artistic genius. His genius is beyond the minds of his critics, be they musicians or not. He addresses conspiracy theorists in a line from “Heaven”:

Conspiracy theorists screaming illuminati,

They can’t believe this much skill is in a human body,

6’2, how the fuck he fit in a new bugatti,

Aw fuck it you got me,

Question religion question it all,

Question existence until them questions are solved,

Meanwhile this heretic, I be out in Marrakesh,

Morocco, smoking hashish with my fellowship,

Y’all dwell on devil shit, I’m in diablo, yellow-shit,

Color of jello shit, hello bitch,

It’s me again, fresh in my easter clothes feeling like Jesus.

For all the so-called purists & the conspiracy theorists, this is a clear message. Jay-Z isn’t here to make you comfortable. He is here to make a living, express himself & expose what he sees as American hypocrisy. With references to Malcolm, Martin Luther King Jr., Wall Street, Jewish affluence and more, this album in no way falls short of being consistent with the tradition of hip-hop as a conscious movement.

Despite ongoing trends & exploitations of the culture, for the most part, there remains a largely alive movement of conscious listeners and artists who remain true to the craft and the messages upon which it was built.

It cannot be understated the impact which 200 years of slavery has had on the African-American culture. This recent interview with Azealia Banks on Hot 97 really captures the emotions of the African-American community. Whether or not you agree with her views or self-expression, I do believe it is important for Americans especially, to hear this perspective. It is true, that Abraham Lincoln emancipated the slaves in the 19th century. But that was the end of a tactic; not of a system. The system which we would like to believe no longer exists today is strong and more alive than ever. Words alone, especially my own, cannot do justice.

Today, hip-hop is saturated with a blend of either ultra-conscious underground or ultra-materialistic mainstream. The medium is there, if you look for it. The majority, which represents the American population, remains held hostage to either the purists within the underground community or the bigots who have largely extended their grasp over the popular media-mainstream, exponentially since the deaths of major hip-hop icons Notorious B.I.G. & Tupac.

I am all for new music & innovation. But I tend not to look for it from many of the artists who the mass-media spoon-feeds us on the daily. I like sticking to my real hip-hop.